Secular Confessions

[Bridget]

Jeez Chrissy. What a difficult situation. I don't have any advice but I sure hope you can honest answers from your girls.

[daylilies]

Wow Chrissy! I'm so glad you found your ring, but I have no idea how I'd deal with that.

Does anyone have any good home remedies for nasal congestion?

[missychrissy]

Netti pot?

[daylilies]

I don't have one

[missychrissy]

I think you can use almost any squeeze bottle...but I'm not sure. I could never bring myself to use one because I get nauseous just reading about the process.

[daylilies]

LOL, yeah, I'm pretty sure I'd mess up and end up inhaling the liquid.
I found a recipe for a hot tomato juice concoction, but it didn't work

[The10Eels]

I confess it is finals week, and I am SO ready for the break! omg.

I have been at work since 10 am (it is now almost 10 pm) and that was a work shift and then doing homework.

One week from tomorrow I will be on the road to California! Woot!

[AbbeysMom]

Netti pot?

I love my neti pot.

[AmeriBrit]

I'm glad you got your ring back, Chrissy. It sounds like you need to talk to them separately, maybe, and see what they say.

Tonight is my work's Christmas party; I can't wait to get out of the house for a bit! Yaaaay!

[missychrissy]

I'm going to talk to Sydney one-on-one about it. I could be wrong, but my feeling is she had it and lost it and didn't dare say anything.

Yay for work Christmas parties!! I guess my boss and I are not invited to the English Dept one this year, if they're even having one. This past year they rearranged things from an accounting perspective and where we used to officially work for the English Dept, we now work for (or are paid through) the Arts and Sciences college. After that point, they stopped asking us to sign birthday cards and share the associated cake.

I know I shouldn't worry about it, but I believe that leaves us out of the monetary share that they do for Christmas every year too, which stinks because last year I got about $600.

[3andMe]

Kaiser is recommending neti pots officially now. I've just been heating water up in the microwave and holding it over my aching sinuses, or drinking it. I have not tried the neti pot, and the last thing I want to do when I'm decluttering is bring something new into the house, especially something that might be in contact with my mucous. I've heard wonderful things about it, though.

Chrissy, I'm glad you have your ring back. Don't know what I'd do about the rest of it.

I love all the new siggy pictures!

I confess I grew up not knowing very many Christmas carols (although I think some of them are quite lovely) and apparently my twins are learning some at preschool for a sing-along next week. In the past week, my children have demonstrated several things that they know that I do not know. Claire has been singing carols I don't know the words to, and Ronin corrected me on a piece of construction equipment I pointed out to him ("No Mom, that's not an excavator, that's a backhoe"). I know it's only going to be more often and more complex, the things they know that I don't know. Sigh.

[daylilies]

That's sweet, Lydia. (I wouldn't know the difference between those trucks either.) We started listening to Christmas carols early (like, early November) to get into the spirit. Josh knows quite a few, and not just the kiddie ones like Frosty the Snowman. He knows a bit of "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" and it's really cute to hear.

[missychrissy]

It's funny what kids will pick up and retain. Conner is really into monster trucks and can tell you the name of each one. I only know Grave Digger on sight.

[stash]

Neti pots are awesome. Get over the squeam factor, because they're far better than any other "medical" remedy out there.

Chrissy, that's tough. I think you're doing the right thing talking with them one on one.

And yeah, we have a wireless network and no, not turning it off at night, though it's on the office side of the house and our bedroom area is the other wing, so I'm not too worried about that.

[Cosmosmom]

When I'm stuffed up or coughing, I like to stand under a hot shower for as long as possible. The steam just does wonders for clearing things up for at least a little while.
I also try to sleep as much as possible, drink tea and have hot soups.

Netti pots gross me out too much to use....I'm kind of squeamish.

[Bridget]

I can't figure out why a netti pot is any more gross than blowing your snot into a tissue but dbf gets all gaggy at the mention of it too.
I have one and I've done it to Savana a few times but I can't get it to work for me. Maybe something is wonky in my nose from getting hit in the nose once but I pour it in one side and it doesn't come out the other...it goes in my throat. And that's gross and unpleasant.

[Cosmosmom]

My nose is a one way street...things come out, not in (except air). LOL I gross out at nasal sprays too. Really it's the idea of stuff going in one and coming out the other....and makes me think like when you are swimming and we would accidently get water in the nose and it would burn and just not feel good. Yuck.

[stash]

Yeah, but I'd rather have nice warm saline in there than a head full of nasty snot.

[missychrissy]

I can't even jump or dive in water without plugging my nose. I don't know how to explain it, but I'd rather do any number of unpleasant things rather than have water up my nose. I don't have issues with my sinuses though and maybe get 1 or 2 colds a year. I'll gladly suffer with a stuffed nose before I'll put water up there. *shudder* Probably psychological, but it doesn't impact me in a negative way.

What does impact me negatively is this blasted cold. I am just miserable from it. I can't be cold and not complain about it, and I'm sick of hearing myself complain about it. I've been wearing two layers of pants, an undershirt and two sweaters and I'm still freezing.

[daylilies]

Sorry Chrissy My husband has been the same way. We all have a cold, but he seems to have it the worst. I'm just ridiculously stuffy and have a scratchy throat.

[3andMe]

Chrissy, just do like I do, turn the heat up to 72 degrees, and keep rotating the microwaveable rice sacks and pile them on pulse points. And I live in fleece.

Before the days of Neti Pots, I had a chronic sinus infection and went to an ENT eventually. He had this treatment he had rigged up with a warm saline solution and a converted WaterPik machine. I had to use that a couple of times a day for months (it was an awful, long-lasting sinus infection--I eventually got a sinus scope and everything) and it provided incredibly forceful, almost painful blasts of water through my nose to the back of my brain. I think that's why I'm a little scared of the Neti Pot, actually.

[AmeriBrit]

Ouch, that doesn't sound like fun, Lydia!!!!

Can anyone tell me how I can block from seeing a friend's status updates on facebook? I'd love to defriend quite a few family members but it would cause a lot of upset, so I thought maybe if I don't have to read their ignorant updates, it would be better for me and cause them no harm!

[Bridget]

If you hover the arrow to the left of one of their stati (?), an X will appear. Click on that and then choose "hide all *insert annoying friend*"

I've hidden several people for the same reason. I can't stand reading their updates but I don't have the heart to unfriend.

[AmeriBrit]

Ah, thank you, Bridget! I'm off to go hiding some friends...lol

[missychrissy]

I think I've hidden most my republican friends and family lol

[AmeriBrit]

I think I've hidden most my republican friends and family lol

Yes, the ones who are posting Glenn Beck things and things about protesting bans of plastic bags have just sent me over the edge...really, you don't think recycling and using less plastic bags is a good idea? Argh! These people!

[Cosmosmom]

Chrissy have you looked at cuddle duds? Maybe they are warmer? I'm also wondering if your iron might be a little low.

[Cosmosmom]

Nope it's the american way and right to litter and fill up all the landfills.
Seriously it's not hard or much of an effort to recycle at least some things!

I think that I have only two republican friends on FB....and one is more a fiscal one than social one and neither post many updates on that.
I did hide everyone's updates on poker, farmville, slots, zombies...whatever games they are playing.

[3andMe]

I started off by hiding all the game updates and the people who checked in every time they were going to the store or picking their noses or having a drink of water, and then I just stopped checking FB at all unless dh said "hey, have you heard from Dave lately? I wonder what he's been up to?" Then I go on and find out he got married or traveled to Africa or bought a house or something, write a brief not of congratulations, and am momentarily happy to have Facebook.

[daylilies]

LOL Lydia!
A few days ago I got a message from a friend I was in a playgroup with like, 2 years ago. After the group broke up they pretty much all stopped talking to me, but I could see through fb that some of them were still hanging out together. She basically outright admitted that she was lonely staying at home now that her two girls are in school and her son is almost 2, and she's desperate for friends. I don't think she meant to insinuate that that's why she was messaging me but it sure came across that way. (English is not her first language so she maybe didn't even realize that how it came across)
Anyway I did the nice thing and said sure, we should get together sometime but I'm just a little upset. We haven't spoken in so long and then out of the blue...
It might be a good opportunity to reconnect with the people I lost touch with in that playgroup, if they are still friends with her. On the other hand, I'm tired of being a fair weather friend. It happens to me all the time and I don't know what attracts people like that to me. I'm also worried that if she's still friends with a woman I had some awkwardness with, and she doesn't realize it and invites us all over or something, it could get weird. I'm thinking way ahead though.